THE FLASH Confirmed To Begin Filming In Early 2019 While BIRDS OF PREY Will Start Slightly Sooner
Buried in today's exciting Supergirl movie report was a very interesting nugget about the future of Warner Bros.' DC Films, which confirmed the production start dates for both The Flash and Birds of Prey.
Earlier today, we received word that a big-budget Supergirl movie was indeed in development at Warner Bros., but buried in Deadline's initial report was a few very interesting nuggets about the studio's upcoming DC Films slate.
The report reaffirms that Todd Phillips' Joker will begin filming next month in New York with 3x Academy Award-nominee Joaquin Phoenix (Don't Worry, He Won't Get Far on Foot) starring the title role. 2x Academy Award-winner Robert De Niro (The Irishman), Primetime Emmy-nominee Zazie Beetz (Deadpool 2), Marc Maron (Glow), Golden Globe-winner Frances Conroy (American Horror Story), and Josh Pais (Ray Donovan) round out the cast. It's slated to hit theaters on October 4, 2019.
Production on Cathy Yan's Birds of Prey, which will feature the return of Academy Award-nominee Margot Robbie (Once Upon A Time In Hollywood) as Harley Quinn, has been slated to begin in January 2019 and while a release date has not been set, the studio is likely eyeing a 2020 release date. The film has been rumored to feature DC heroines Black Canary, Huntress, Renee Montoya, and a young Cassandra Cain as well as Batman villain Black Mask. ComicBookMovie's Mark Cassidy also recently shared an exclusive update on who WB may be interested in casting for two of the lead roles.
The Flash, which will star Ezra Miller in the title role as Barry Allen, has now been confirmed to commence production in February 2019 and is also presumably looking at a potential 2020 release date. Game Night directors Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley will be helming the long-awaited solo feature with a script from Joby Harold (King Arthur: Legend of the Sword). In addition to Miller, Kiersey Clemons and Billy Crudup are expected to feature as Iris West and Henry Allen, respectively. Fellow Justice Leaguers Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman 1984) and Ray Fisher (Cyborg) have also been rumored to appear, but the status on both is uncertain at best.
DHD also provides a small update on The Batman, but only mention that director Matt Reeves (War for the Planet of the Apes) is still hard at work on the project. It's not much, but the fact that it's in active development does seemingly suggest that it could and likely will also roll cameras sometime next year.
Warner Bros. has already booked four release dates in 2020 - February 14, April 3, June 5, and July 24 - so, expect to see Birds of Prey, The Flash, The Batman, and/or a yet-to-be-named fourth film land on one of these dates.
As for the rest of the confirmed Worlds of DC slate, James Wan's Aquaman, starring Jason Momoa (Game of Thrones), hits theaters this Christmas while David F. Sandberg's Shazam!, starring Zachary Levi (Chuck), hits theaters in April 2019. Gadot then reunites with Patty Jenkins for Wonder Woman 1984, which is due out in theaters November 2019.